Campus life [2025-09-15]

NCU at the largest conference on the internationalisation

— Editors

On 8–12 September 2025, Gothenburg hosted the most important European conference on the internationalisation of higher education – #EAIE2025, organised by the European Association for International Education (EAIE). This year's edition, under the slogan 'GO-create', brought together over 7,000 participants from around the world, including representatives of 40 Polish universities.

The Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń also actively participated in the event, represented by:

• Prof. Magdalena Barwiołek – Vice-Rector for International Relations, executive director of the Young Universities for the Future of Europe (YUFE) at NCU,
• Prof. Bogumiła Kupcewicz – Rector's Deputy for education and student affairs in Collegium Medicum,
• Dr Anna Kola – Vice-Dean for the Organization of Education of the Faculty of Philosophy and Social Science, leader of the Student Journey team (WP2),
• Anna Prykanowska – Department of International Partnerships and Educational Mobility, Deputy Institutional Coordinator (WP1),
• Marta Żuchowska and Aleksandra Kowalska – Department of International Partnerships and Educational Mobility, decentralised recruitment officers (WP2 ).

Meetings, discussions, cooperation

Participation in #EAIE2025 was an extremely important time for NCU to build international relations and develop academic cooperation with universities from around the world. Representatives of our university held a series of meetings with institutional partners, including:

• Universidad Icesi (Colombia)
• National Central University (Taiwan)
• National Central University (Taiwan)
• Kobe University (Japan)
• Julius-Maximilians-Universität Würzburg (Germany)
• Sejong University (South Korea)
• Carl von Ossietzky Universität Oldenburg (Germany)
• North American Private University in Sfax (Tunisia)
• BINUS University International (Indonesia)
• Örebro University (Sweden)
• Fenerbahçe University (Turkey)
• University of Basel (Switzerland)
• University of Bremen (Germany)
• National University of 'Kyiv-Mohyla Academy' (Ukraine)

The interlocutors included key figures responsible for international cooperation, such as:

• Prof. Minoru Mizuhata – Director of Europe & Africa Division, Kobe University
• Prof. Chang Chung-Pai – Vice President for International Affairs, National Central University (Taiwan)
• Prof. Dr Mehmet Yildim Üçtug – Vice Rector, Fenerbahçe University

These meetings will result in new cooperation agreements, as well as initiatives in the field of student and academic exchange, joint research and educational projects.

Discussions on the future of higher education

This year's edition of the EAIE conference focused on key issues affecting the development of higher education – from internationalisation and mobility, through geopolitical changes, to the development of artificial intelligence.

Much attention was also devoted to the situation of universities in countries affected by armed conflict, such as Ukraine, Palestine and, in a slightly different context, the United States. A special topic was European university alliances, including YUFE, of which NCU is an active member. Their role in shaping the European Union's education and research policy was discussed.

We are living in times of profound change – disinformation, geopolitical tensions and the development of AI are significantly affecting social and academic life. Higher education must not only respond, but also actively shape the future of education – emphasize representatives of the Nicolaus Copernicus University, summarizing the main messages of the conference.

The conference ended with an inspiring lecture by Andreas Ekström, journalist and futurologist, on artificial intelligence and its impact on society. The speaker emphasised that "learning by doing is the future, but the unreflective use of AI can lead to mediocrity and a loss of critical thinking skills".

The presence of YUFE and NAWA

Young Universities for the Future of Europe (YUFE) and NAWA – the National Agency for Academic Exchange – also had stands at the conference, which created additional space for discussions with stakeholders and partners from around the world.

The YUFE alliance was represented by, among others, Secretary General Maria Valerie-Schlengk and other alliance partners: University of Eastern Finland, University of Cyprus, Maastricht University, Universiteit Antwerpen, Université Sorbonne Nouvelle, University of Rijeka, University of Essex, University of Bremen, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid.

This year's participation of Young Universities for the Future of Europe (YUFE) in the conference was aimed at highlighting the potential of the universities that make up the alliance and networking in the form of a Meet&Greet with HEI representatives.